Lemon fresh

After hunting about since may, I finally obtained 21 organic lemons. J noticed them when we were getting groceries this week. And so...I have finally begun my Limoncello project. First attempt...and I am hoping it turns out.

Since you only use the yellow part of the lemon peel (not any of the pith as it is bitter) and soak it in alcohol for about a month I only wanted organic lemons...and they have been pretty sad and shrivelly up until this point. A potato peeler works remarkably well for this. You're supposed to use Everclear for the liquor in this to be traditional, but you can't get it up here in Canadaland, so I opted for a good clean tasting grain vodka instead- Stolichnaya Gold label. I couldn't get any 100 proof vodka...I did the best I could.

And after 20 minutes of peeling and grinning I now have 20 lemon peels and and 1.5 L of vodka steeping in a sealed glass jar in a cold dark place for a 2-4 weeks. Once the peels are colourless and crisp like potato chips I can strain them out and add slightly more than an equal amount of simple syrup...then age a month or so, chill it in the freezer and test it out. I may put a vanilla bean into one of the finished bottles - I've heard vanilla limoncello is rather tasty too...we shall see.

For now I am content to have lemony goodness steeping away in my cupboard. I'll let you know how it goes.